A Fools Dream
by Erutan Xiku
Summary: Whilst travelling through a town, continuing their journey West, the Sanzo group happen across a battle with youkai, resulting in a sequence of events, involving a new member...so to speak... and a little self realisation for one of them Chapter: 9
1. Chapter: 1

A Fools Dream

Disclaimer: I do not own Saiyuki, nor did I have anything to do with its creation, and all content referring to Saiyuki belongs to Minekura Kazuya. Also any characters that do not appear in the original Saiyuki series have nothing to do with the series, and strictly appear for the purpose of this story.

~Chapter: 1~

Clear, golden sunlight filtered in through the canopy of the trees above, the leaves breaking the rays into numerous piercings, and allowing them passage to caress the lush green grass that sprouted from the earth. Birds sang among the trees, their music welcoming and relaxing to those who wandered through, animals, youkai and humans alike. The leaves, grass and numerous other plant-lives glistened with the waters from the early morning rain, the droplets casting the forest with a crystalline sheen, making it appear something close to ethereal – a truly rare and beautiful sight. Day animals, great and small, ventured out from their homes, passing among the trees in search of the day's meal, and other activities to do as the day progressed. All in all, the forest was at peace, harmony portrayed within its atmosphere, as nature itself existed as a simple, congruent balance – the perfect example of the way the world should be.

            The serenity of this part of the wider world was broken suddenly, as the quietness of it was overruled by the sounds of a motor-engine, its main body driving by, passing along the plains on which the forest was situated at. The engine appeared to be revved up to its maximum, and so the people within the vehicle were travelling at very high speeds – one can only wonder how the driver could keep control and stay alert behind the wheel.

            "Hakkai, man, what's the rush?!" the redhead of the group cried out, while trying to keep a firm hold so as not to end up flying out of the jeep, in which they travelled. The jeep rocked violently and jumped slightly, as they drove over an unsuspecting rock, throwing almost everyone out of their seats, and back down again with a painful 'thud'.

            "No rush, just trying to get to the next town in good time," the dark haired driver replied, his tone cheerful as always no matter the situation. The redhead, whose eye and hair colour marked him as a half-breed, let out a frustrated sigh and opened his mouth to say something, when the growling stomach of the youngest member chimed in.

            "Go Hakkai! Faster, I'm hungry and I need to eat as quickly as possible!" the young youkai cried, as he held onto the railing above his head, his voice raised with a mixture of excitement and worry at the speed they were going. The jeep rocked again, sending the four travellers bouncing in their seats yet again, but this time the bouncing did not stop, as they drove over what appeared to be steps of rocks set into the ground. Goku let out a 'whoop' of excitement, as he made out the town that was nearing with every passing second, then let out a cry of pain as the jeep jolted violently, sending him up and forwards, his head impacting against the seat in front of him.

            "Ha! Maybe that'll shut you up, you idiot ape!" Gojyo exclaimed, laughing lightly as he did so, when another jolt sent him out of his seat and hitting his own head against the railing, crying out in pain as the shock ran through him. Goku laughed out loud, as he witnessed the rare act of Karma.

            "What goes around comes around, perverted kappa!" he chimed, as he settled down to think about the delicious foods he would be savouring, once they had entered the town and taken up lodgings. "Oh, and don't call me 'idiot ape'," he added, coming out of his musings just long enough.

            "_'What goes around comes around,' _", the half-breed mimicked in a vulgar tone under his breath, as he rubbed his head where it had hit the railing. He winced, as he accidentally pressed too hard on the tender spot, when the jeep jumped once again.

~*~

"Woohoo! Food!" Goku cried out happily, as he leapt out of the jeep. They had entered the town, the jeep coming to its usual wild and violent stop, as Hakkai had to steer furiously with the way it was skidding, keeping the vehicle under miraculous control.

            "Quit drooling idiot, we have to check in first," the redhead reprimanded, as he came out of the jeep, his legs seeming to betray their support after the mind-numbing experience he had gone through. It was something he knew he should be well accustomed to by now, being Hakkai's passenger, but no matter how many times the one-time human drove, the half-breed knew each time would probably be a new experience.

            "I know that, and stop calling me an 'idiot', you cockroach kappa!" the golden-eyed youkai exclaimed, turning back to face the older man. Gojyo frowned and was about to say something more, when an audible 'click' of a gun could be heard.

            "Shut up, the both of you, or you know what'll follow next," the blond haired monk threatened, as he aimed his weapon on them. The two youkai nodded in silent response, not daring to meet the monk's gaze, which they knew matched his words and backed up his threat. "Now, let's get going," he said, replacing the gun, as he walked off and towards the Inn. Hakkai turned and gave the two an amused look, and smiled as he turned back and followed in the blond's footsteps, the jeep having turned into Hakuryuu, who was now perched upon his shoulder. Goku and Gojyo looked at each other, and glared before moving off in their wake, following them to the Inn that was located just outside the rows of shops, which dotted the area before the houses of those who inhabited the town.

            Their walk to the Inn was very short, and they entered filing in one-by-one, as they pushed the door open for each other. Gojyo let it swing shut behind him, as a satisfied smirk touched his lips at the sound of Goku's cry of pain and surprise. _'Heh, stupid ape got what was coming, he knows he shouldn't rely on people,'_ He followed Sanzo and Hakkai to the counter, where he turned about and leaned against it in a leisurely manner, his smirk growing into a smile as he saw the young youkai rubbing his nose and head, his eyes close to watering. The golden-eyed teen caught the look, and scowled in return, thinking up some way to get his revenge, as he didn't want to disturb the business going between Sanzo and the innkeeper. Unbeknownst to them, Sanzo cast a quick glance their way, and sighed inwardly, he was going to be due another headache this night during dinner, and so he planned on what he was going to do to shut them up this time.

            "Yes…we'd like some lodgings for the night, if it is possible," the monk said, his tone gruff and practical as always. The innkeeper blinked, then let his eyes glide over the company Sanzo was keeping, "Is there a problem?" the blond asked, his tone rising as it hinted to some degree of danger, if his request wasn't processed fast enough.

            "W-what? No, there isn't a problem, Sanzo…" the innkeeper stuttered quickly as he was taken by surprise, and bowed quickly, only to look up and meet the dark look sent his way by the robed man. "Your rooms shall be prepared for, please wait a moment and I will send for someone to guide you," he said, and then dismissed himself from their presence, to go and check on any suitable rooms.

            "Nice man," Hakkai commented, "a little jumpy, but nice," he said, fixing the violet-eyed monk with an amused look, at which Sanzo just snorted and turned his attention to the other two youkai. Gojyo was still leaning against the counter, blowing at Goku's mop of brown hair, the young youkai trying his hardest not to lose his temper. The monk caught the slight twitch pass over the youth's face, and then groaned mentally as he guessed what was coming next, and prepared for it.

            "Will you stop that, you fucking kappa?!" Goku exclaimed, turning about to fix an angered gaze on the redhead. His hands were balled into tight fists, which were bound to become tighter if he didn't calm down. A ghost of a smirk passed over the half-breeds face, as he simply shrugged.

            "Stop what?" he asked innocently, flashing a child-like and equally innocent gaze towards the angered youth. He fought the urge to break into laughter, and to hide any trace of a smile, as he continued to look at Goku's rapidly reddening face.

            "You know what I mean! I want you to stop blowing on my hair, you asshole!" he cried, his body shaking with the anger he felt rising within him. The redhead raised an eyebrow, and pursed his lips, blowing on the youth's hair once more, and smirked.

            "Make me, dumbass ape," he taunted, and prepared himself as he foresaw Goku's reaction, which would have come, if the two hadn't been taken by surprise by the sudden appearance of Sanzo's paper fan, which he used to smack their heads with. The two cried out in pain, and shot angered glares at the source, only to find their anger diminishing immediately as they caught Sanzo's unspoken death-threat.

            "Shut up, both of you! Do you have to piss me off so soon after that crazy ride?!" he growled dangerously, as he tried to keep his own rising anger in check. The two youkai just pouted and rubbed their heads, trying to ease the pain, as the monk turned back to the counter as he replaced his paper weapon. Hakkai shook his head, trying to keep himself from saying something, when the blessed sounds of approaching feet caught his attention. The four men looked up to see a young girl stepping out of the halls that led to the Inns rooms. She was dressed in traditional clothes, the shades of which were blue, trimmed with white, her dark brown hair tied up in a neat bun. She bowed in greeting, and rose up to meet their gazes.

            "The Sanzo group?" she queried, her soft voice echoing gently within the now quiet area. The group nodded, and she smiled, "please follow me," she said, then turned about and walked back down the hall, leading them to their individual rooms.

~*~*~*~

A/N: Right, I'm sorry…this is the first chapter of the story, and the following chapters may not appear straight away, the latest a possible early update can take place is by this Friday (19th Dec), while the latest date for an update would be some time early next January, since I'll be on holiday…I apologise again.


	2. Chapter: 2

A Fools Dream

~Chapter: 2~

He drew in a deep breath, inhaling the cigarette he had lit. He didn't know if this was the fifth or sixth one, nor did he care. It didn't matter anyway; all that he was focused on was getting the necessary dose of nicotine, which only one stick no longer provided. He held the mix of flavours provided by the cigarette, a few moments longer, feeling the various substances flowing through him, taken up by his blood as they visited his lungs. He drew his hand away from his mouth, letting it fall by his side as he parted his lips, pursing them as he exhaled. The smoke coming out in a thick stream, rushing out and diffusing into the air in front him, only to be partly taken up as he breathed through his nose, while he walked along the streets of the town.

            The place was busy, especially the market area that was located some way in front of the town's temple, the building erected to provide a place of worship to the Buddha. A curt smile formed on his lips, but was short-lived as he realised that his cigarette had all but turned to ash, leaving only the butt, which was useless in itself. He carelessly flicked it away, after pinching the neck quickly to put out the embers, and reached for his pack. He brought it up to his lips, squeezing it slightly, expecting the butt of another cigarette to pop up and meet his lips. A frown creased his brow as none came up, and he inspected the packet, only to find it empty. Gritting his teeth in a frustrated manner, he squeezed the empty pack and threw it with perfect aim at the nearest bin, not even bothering to watch it disappear. _'Dammit…Hakkai doesn't know I'm gonna need a new pack…guess I'll have to buy it myself,'_ he thought, as he jammed his hands into the pockets of his earth-brown trousers, and continued to walk towards the market, but this time with a purpose.

            As he walked towards the first stall he saw that sold what he needed, he paused realising that he didn't have any money on him. All the while he had been walking, he had been too absorbed on focusing his mind on blocking out the shifty stares, and quick glances thrown his way by the locals. Yes, he had come to terms with what he was, a half-breed, but he didn't need the constant reminders that plagued him from everyone, _'At least the women don't care about my origins…even if they do know, they still think my hair and eyes are too attractive to turn down,'_ he thought, somewhat miserably. That was all that mattered to them anyway, appearances…and nothing else, it hurt and isolated him…the only time he truly felt like something more than an ornament, or a toy, was when he was with those he travelled with, _'But even then…people still give me those looks…'_

            "Come on!" a sudden announcement caught his ears, compelling him to turn about and gaze over towards a man, who stood up tall in the middle of a crowd, "Come on! I'll take anyone on, I've been unbeaten so far, and I'm on a roll! Lady Luck's on my side!" he continued to say, as he spread his arms out wide in a welcoming gesture. Gojyo raised an eyebrow, his interest had been sparked, and he began to move towards the crowd and the loud man.

            "Yo!" he called, thrusting his head a bit as he approached the man, the crowd parting to grant him passage, "This a gambling game?" he asked, having caught the mans attention. He was a rather plump person, greasy, dark hair cropped short and plastered to his head, with sweat that had accumulated throughout the hot day. As the redhead neared, he caught the strong scent of sake, and various alcoholic drinks wafting from the area, mainly the man, _'Hmm…drinks served with the game as well…not bad,'_ he thought as a smile formed on his lips. Misinterpreting the smile for something completely different, the man grinned and clapped his hands together.

            "You have a good eye, this is a gambling game…and I'm assuming you're here to accept my challenge, eh," he said, seating himself at the table and gesturing to the vacant space opposite him. Gojyo nodded and took the seat, and was about to place an order, when the man did it for him, "two strong gin's please," he said, then cocked an eyebrow as he smiled, and placed a deck of cards in front of the half-breed. "We're playing Blackjack, you cut'em since you're new," The half-youkai nodded, and shuffled the cards, then handed them back, allowing the man to deal them two cards each. Gojyo looked at his hand, and paused a moment, considering what move to make, he looked up and caught the flash of confidence go across his opponents face, then made his decision.

            "Hit me," he said, and the cocked his head slightly, and grinned as the drinks came. He took one card off the deck, and placed it down for the half-breed to pick up. Gojyo took a quick drink from his glass, then placed his hand over the card, pausing for dramatic effect, then picked it up and smiled as he set it with the other two he had received previously.

            "So…what ya got?" the man asked, his previously smug face coming down in curiosity. Gojyo smiled, and indicated for the man to show his hand first, which he did after a moment's hesitation. A mere nineteen, was what had totalled, and the redhead's smile grew as he placed his cards down, one-by-one.

            "Twenty-one…looks like I win this one," he said, resting an elbow on the knee of a folded leg. The man's eyebrows were raised in disbelief, his winning streak had been ruined, but maybe it was just luck.

            "You're good…but it must be beginner's luck, I have been playing for a while longer, you know," he said, making his defeat sound less painful. Gojyo shrugged, and indicated for the man to continue on with another round, or a different game altogether.

~*~

"A Full House!" the half-breed announced, leaning back among the women that had gathered about him, obviously attracted by his appearance and the fact that he was winning, and had been since he had sat down. His opponent seemed beyond understanding, how could this have happened, he was winning well and every game, up until the redhead had showed up. It just wasn't possible, either he was very good, or he was cheating somehow – the latter seemed like the more plausible, and so he stuck with it, considering no one was that good. "Well, it's been nice playing you…but I gotta get going, I'm leaving in the morning," the tall man said, stretching as he stood up and pocketed his winnings, "hey, you were a good match…I've never been so worried in a game before," he said, trying to lighten the dark haired mans mood as he caught his disbelieving expression. Gojyo turned to leave, passing a seductive, and irresistible smile to the women about him, watching them swoon and fan themselves in a manner he had predicted, when a heavy hand suddenly placed itself upon his shoulder. He turned about, the pleasant smile he had formed on his face melting away, as he caught a flashing glimpse of a fist flying his way, and caught the blow full on.

            "You cheated somehow, you asshole!" the man cried, readying himself as the half-breed stumbled back a bit, a hand raised to his face. He drew his head up, placing a harsh glare on the man, who was trying to look as menacing as possible. He brought his hand away from his face, catching the sight of blood, the same shade as his hair and eyes, coating his fingertips.

            "Just what is your problem? Can't you take losing?" he asked, straightening his form and coming to his full height, and he wiped the blood away with the back of his hand. The man snorted and spat at Gojyo's feet, then launched himself upon him. The redhead was prepared, and drew his hands up, catching the man by the collar of his shirt, and threw him aside, his plump body crashing atop the low table. "Listen, I don't want to fight…but I'll defend myself in any way," he said, and threw up his arms to block the mans weight, as he threw himself at the tall half-breed. The weight was too much to support, and so Gojyo collapsed, the weight of the man on top of him taking his breath away. He opened his mouth to take in another breath, when hands grasped about his throat, squeezing and his eyes flew open to see the mans angered face, his teeth set as he strained to cut off the air supply.

            "Take that you bastard!" he hissed, saliva being thrown in the air between them as they flew between the gaps of his teeth. He raised Gojyo's head, and then slammed it back down on the ground, the world beginning to swim and tilt before his eyes. The redhead squeezed his eyes shut, then drew back a balled fist, and opened them as he threw it into the mans gut with all his strength. The man gasped, but kept his hold, Gojyo continued to punch him repeatedly, then brought his own hands up and around the others neck, tightening his grip. He brought the head down, the mans eyes widened in fear at the sudden strength the half-breed was displaying.

            "I'm not gonna die that easily," Gojyo whispered, then pulled his head back as much as possible, then threw it forwards, smashing it into the others. The mans grip faltered a bit as he tried to sit up, but he only pulled Gojyo with him, and was met by another headbutt, this one harder and more powerful than the first, as he had more room to gain leverage in. The man reeled back, as the redhead released his grip and watched as the man toppled backwards, landing in a heap. Some men that had gathered about to watch the fight knelt beside the man, "he's alright, just out cold…he'll wake up with a splitting headache, by the way," the half-breed said, as he came to his feet and brushed himself off. He checked to see if his nose was still bleeding, and was satisfied that it wasn't.

Casting a dark look over the unconscious body, Gojyo jammed his hands into his trouser pockets, and walked off into the direction of the stall he had stopped at earlier. He asked for a dozen packs of cigarettes of his brand, and a dozen of another that were for a certain corrupted monk he knew, although he had kept that information to himself. The owner handed the packs in two bags, as the redhead fished about for the required amount charged, and walked away with a parting smile. He took out a pack from his bag and opened it up, taking out a much-needed cigarette and lit it, inhaling the comforting vapours that his body craved for.

~*~*~*~*~*~

A/N: Thank for the reviews so far, they have been inspiring…I'm afraid that this may be the only update for now…I'll have to finish this story during Jan…thanks again.


	3. Chapter: 3

A Fools Dream

~Chapter: 3~

 "Ow, dammit!" cried Goku as a rush of crimson strands flew into his face, tickling his skin in an uncomfortable manner. They were on the next leg of their journey, and had been since they had left the town about three days ago now.

            "What's the problem?" Gojyo asked, moving his head slightly over his shoulder, as the wind blew fiercely in his face, created by the fast speed Hakkai was driving at. _'I swear he gets a kick out of this…I mean who would guess that he of all people could drive like this?!'_ the redhead thought, as he pushed some hair out of his face.

            "Ow! It's that damned girly hair of yours! It's blowing in my face!" the young youkai said in a heated tone, as he swatted the stray strands away from his face. He let out a frustrated growl, as the wind blew the plume of red back in his face.

            "Hey, my hair ain't the thing that's girly around here, your whining is!" the half-breed shot back, turning his face to glance over his shoulder to see Goku's angered expression, "if you're unhappy, just move your seating position, idiot,"

            "I don't whine like a girl, and stop calling me an idiot! Bastard kappa!" the youth snapped, once again brushing the strands out of his face, only to have them blown back into his face yet again. Gojyo chuckled lightly as Goku let out a frustrated cry, but was taken by surprise as the teen took a sudden hold of his hair, and began to twine it viciously into a bun.

            "Hey! Get your dirty hands off of my hair, you crazy ape!" the redhead exclaimed in surprise and anger, as he threw his hands off of the secure hold he had to keep himself from flying out of the jeep, and clasped them about the younger youkai's. He struggled to remove the hands, only causing pain to shoot from the roots that were planted in his scalp, making him sure that the struggle would result in the removal of a few, if not all of his hair.

            "It's not my fault if you can't control you hair, asshole, and don't call me an ape!" Goku replied, as he shoved his body into Gojyo's back, trying to keep him from releasing the grip he had on his hair.

            "Fuck you, brainless bastard!" the redhead growled, as he managed to successfully pry off a finger, only to have it snap back in place once he had let go of it. He grit his teeth in frustration and rolled off of his seat, landing on the base of the jeep with a 'thud', feeling the wind being driven out of the young youkai as the half-breeds weight fell upon him. He reached behind him, and over his head, his hands meeting with the tousled tufts of brown hair belonging to his assailant. Goku let out a cry of pain as Gojyo tugged at his hair, "Ha, fair's fair, or as you'd say _'What goes around comes around,'_ brainless ape!" he chimed, wincing as the other tugged at his long strands.

            "Quit your fighting, bastards," Sanzo growled from the front seat, his harsh words amazingly managing to break through the sounds of their struggle. His brow twitched when they continued to fight, and it appeared that they had no intention of stopping, "I said stop fighting, you fucking assholes!" he roared, as he turned about and smacked the pair with his paper fan. The jeep came to a sudden, screeching halt, sending anyone who wasn't securely seated lurching forwards, or in the case of Goku and Gojyo, crashing into the backs of the front seats.

            "Dammit, Hakkai! Why did you stop like that?!" Sanzo snapped suddenly, having had not enough time to quell the anger he felt towards the previously squabbling pair, who were now groaning in pain as they pushed themselves up off the base of the jeep.

            "Ah, I'm sorry Sanzo…but there seems to be a battle going on ahead, which seems to be a little one sided," the dark haired driver replied, smiling apologetically and giving a look that matched. Sanzo scowled and looked ahead, sure enough there was a battle consisting of a dozen youkai and two people, one of whom appeared to be knocked unconscious. "So…what should we do?"

            "Help out of course! You never know, the person may be a really good looking woman, and may be in the mood to reward us…well, namely me," Gojyo answered quickly, before the monk could reply. He had managed to bring himself up to survey the scene, and was now ignoring the death-glare that the blond was fixing on him, while Hakkai merely chuckled.

            "Is that all you think about, you pervert, adding a new name or number, to your ever growing list of bedded women?!" Goku exclaimed, pulling himself up and leaning against the seat in front of him, which happened to be Sanzo's. He looked ahead and watched as the standing figure among the youkai, dodged an attack from one of the attackers and rammed what looked like a blunt weapon into the space between their shoulder blades. The figure then continued to dance out of the way of weapons and attacks, keeping a suitable distance between the youkai and the fallen figure. "Hmm…well we are a little out of practice, and they are in our way…so let's go!" the youth sang out, and jumped out of the jeep, making his way towards the battle while calling out for his Nyoibou, clearly ignoring the protesting cries and threats that the monk was giving him.

            "Hey! Wait up!" Gojyo cried, leaping out of the jeep after him, their earlier disagreement tucked away for a later time, and possibly date. He disappeared in a rush of red, blue and brown; a barely discernible figure directed towards the fray ahead, their voice crying out for their weapon, which promptly appeared in a sudden gathering of light. Hakkai chuckled and shook his head in amusement as he saw the two making their way eagerly towards the battle, then looked up to meet the angered face of Sanzo, who had stood up in his seat, fuming silently.

            "Maybe, we should join them," the dark-haired man suggested, his voice coming out low and tentative.

~*~

Dodge, Sidestep, Dance and Twirl – these were the keys to survival that had been trained into her, since the time she was able. Slash, Jab, Parry, Leap and Follow-up – these were the etiquettes to offence, which went hand-in-hand with the keys to survival. Currently these techniques had been called upon yet again, this time against a dozen or so youkai. They had outnumbered and overpowered a foolish girl, whose motives were a mystery, as she had simply come upon the group preparing to do as they willed with her unconscious form. She jumped back from an attack, and slashed her weapon out towards them, rending a deep gash across their belly, and then leaped out of the way as another youkai prepared to place a well-aimed blow with a club. She continued to block and dodge the many attacks that came her way, waiting for an opening so she could counterattack, but none seemed likely for the moment.

            A sudden flash of red accompanied by a battle cry caught her by surprise, the sound accompanied by a howl of death, and red liquid to be sent across her path. Another cry erupted, followed by the sound of rending flesh and crunching bones as a body was severed, the contents spilling out, as again a similar red liquid was sprayed about. She pushed back a youkai that currently had their weapon against hers, and then gripped the casing that gave her weapon the illusion of being blunt, and removed it to reveal a polished blade. As the youkai gained their balance and made a rush towards her, she drove the blade into their gut, the tip protruding way past their back. She grunted under the heavy weight of her would-be attacker, and heaved with all her strength, sending them tumbling backwards, their life extinguished, leaving a bloody stain on her grey robes.

            She drew her elbow back, the sound of cartilage crunching, as the jolt of a successful impact ran through her arm. She turned about, her robes flying about her, as she prepared to attack and slashed across the youkai's body, watching it cry in pain as it fell to the ground at her feet, its life expelling from the empty shell of its one-time body. Her eyes flew up, catching sight of the battle commencing ahead, two more had joined her fight, the fight she had taken upon herself when she had spotted the injustice about to happen. She sought out the unconscious figure, and found them safely aside, a sigh of relief passing through. She sheathed her blade, and made her way to the figure, watching as the two newcomers dodged and fought against the rogue youkai. The taller of the two had caught her attention, crimson hair whipping about his tanned face – a half youkai fighting against full-blooded ones, a curious sight indeed. The shorter had brown hair and seemed to be enjoying himself, as he leapt over the attackers, ramming his red coloured weapon into them, whenever there was an opening.

            A sudden flash of light filled her vision, and she instinctively dusked as whatever the thing was roared her way, taking with it any youkai that had been in its destructive path. Gunshots followed shortly after, the cries of more dying youkai filling the air, just who were these people and why were they aiding her, or rather taking part in this fight. Time seemed to fly past unnoticeably as she kept her head down, not sure when it would be a convenient time to rise from where she lay, close to the unconscious girl. Cries and various sounds she thought she'd never hear filled the air between her and the others; despite the training she had, she really wasn't prepared for this kind of violence, as it was different to the ones she dealt out.

            "Hey, you okay?" a clear voice asked, the owner keeping their tone gentle so as not to frighten her. She sensed them kneel over, feeling their shadow falling over her as the came in for a closer look, "Hey…can you hear me?"

            "Why are you even bothering, they're probably just unconscious or something," came a harsher tone of voice, much different from the one that was looking over her.

            "Are you sure they're unconscious? They could just be faking it, since they probably don't want to look up to see the kappa's ugly face," came another, much lighter voice, which suddenly cried out in pain as something obviously hit them. She felt a hand place itself gently upon her shoulder, shaking her gently, trying to rouse her. What was keeping her fro responding, was she afraid, or was it that she didn't want to see their faces for fear of being recognised. She could feel the pressure becoming slightly greater as whoever it was, was attempting to roll her over, when she let out a low moan, a tactic she hoped would tell them that she had been unconscious all this time. She pushed herself up slowly; making sure that her face was well hidden in the shadow of her wide-brimmed hat, the garment used to keep the Sun out of her eyes as she travelled. The one closest to her was young; he had dark hair and amazing green eyes, the right one bearing a monocle.

            "Are you okay?" they asked, as her eyes flicked up to survey the others. Sure enough, the one with red hair was a half-breed; the shortest of the four was rubbing their brown-topped head, as they shot death glares at the taller man. Her eyes continued to wander and fell upon the last one, the unusual crown of blond hair topping his head, and effectively masking the minute red chakra upon his brow, that marked him as a Sanzo. His piercing violet eyes bore into hers; scrutinizing her and the situation they had found her in. "Excuse me…" the green-eyed man prompted, recapturing her attention.

            "Ena…my name's Ena, thank you for helping me," she said, keeping her voice purposely low and deep, hoping that it would throw them off her true self. She pushed herself up, coming to her feet and made sure that her weapon was securely at her lower-back, "I must be going now…please, make sure this girl gets to the town safely, I fear she may need medical help of some sort," she continued, indicating the unconscious girl, and stepped away from the group of men. She nodded and bowed, then turned and continued on her way, keeping her pace deliberately calm so as not to arise any form of suspicion.

            "Did that seem weird to you in any way?" Gojyo asked, once the person they had just lent their aid to relieved themselves of their company. Hakkai came to his feet and moved towards the unconscious form, and began to check her over.

            "Yup, it sure did…but we have to get this girl to the town, I can only examine so much," Hakkai said, leaning back from the girls body and indicating the extent of his medical abilities. Sanzo scowled in displeasure, he obviously didn't like the idea of taking another person's advice other than those he would like to hear it from – this girl wasn't their problem, she had been found by that oddball of a traveller and was now flung into their hands.

            "I say we just leave her here for some other traveller to pick up, she isn't of our concern," he said, his voice stern and final as he spoke his decision.

            "But Sanzo, we're heading to the town anyway, can't we just lug her along and leave her at the hospital or whatever medical place they have?" the young youkai asked, stepping between the elder monk and unconscious girl.

            "That would be a more logical idea, considering the likelihood of another traveller passing by within the next few minutes of our leave," the green-eyed man mused, trying to keep his personal opinion out of the conversation.

            "It would also be the most gentleman-like thing you'll ever do, and possibly the only one," the redhead said, trying the approach of flattery, "plus no-one'll know but us, and we're not gonna tell anyone," Sanzo scowled and shot each one a withering glare, this was something he hated greatly, having his word over-ridden by the three he travelled with.

            "Why do I even bother speaking my ideas, when it'll always be torn down by pathetic excuses and attempts to soften my mind," the monk hissed, keeping with great effort to keep his tone under control, "it's a vain attempt, so you idiots can do whatever, I don't care," he turned about and made his way to the jeep, leaving the three youkai to do whatever they wished or agreed upon. The three smiled and followed after their leader, the girl being carried by Hakkai, as they returned to the jeep and continued the remaining journey to the next town.

~*~*~*~

A/N: Thanks for being patient, I'm sorry for the late update, but as can be seen, I'm back from my holiday and ready to complete this story among the other one I'm working on for FF7.


	4. Chapter: 4

A Fools Dream

~Chapter: 4~

Wisps of smoke rose up into the air, diffusing amongst the particles as Gojyo lay upon the bed, gazing at the ceiling, thinking about nothing in particular. They had been fortunate enough to hire their own rooms this night, _'A rare luxury, which I hope to experience full-time, one day...I wonder how that girl's doing…'_ he thought, his mind finally finding a subject to dwell upon. They had brought the girl to the town, much to Sanzo's evident displeasure, and had dropped her off at the local hospital, just in case she was badly injured and needed immediate attention. His chest rose as he drew in another deep breath, the mix of flavours present in his cigarette playing with his tongue, soothing his stresses and on the verge of lulling him to sleep. It was the next best thing to what he did best to relieve his stresses, but he just wasn't in the mood, as usual.

He shrugged as he smiled to himself, tonight was part of a chain of nights he could cherish by himself, no echoing cries of pleasure, no begging for more, it almost drove him insane when they would utter and repeat the same words, over and over again. All they ever wanted was his body, and yes, sometimes he would initiate it, but it was a mere test, to see who was truly willing, not just for his genes, but for himself, someone he could truly be happy with.

A sudden knock on the door sent him into a fit of coughs, as the flavours he held within his mouth were sucked in even deeper, for he was taken by surprise by the abrupt sound that interrupted the silence. The knocking persisted, as he rolled onto his side, fixing his pain-watered gaze on the door, wishing that he were able to harness his Ki just like Hakkai, anything to stop that infernal knocking. He sat up and planted his hands on his knees, fixing his gaze on the pale-carpeted floor at his feet. His form shuddered as he struggled to regain control of his breathing, and avoid hiccoughs if he were to steady the pulls of breath any earlier than they should.

"Who is it?" he croaked, clearing his throat afterwards, as he came to his feet and moved towards the door. The knocking ceased at the sound of his voice, and he frowned. "Who's there?" he asked, placing a hand on the door-handle and turning it about slightly. Sighing irritably, at the lack of an answer, he opened the door and scowled, noting that it was the young, brown-haired member of their troupe. "What do you want Goku?" he asked, the words coming out in a terse fashion. The young youkai scowled, and then quickly calmed himself, as he remembered why he had come to the half-breed's room in the first place.

            "Sanzo was wondering if you were ever gonna leave that room of yours," he said, folding his arms in a lax manner. Gojyo raised an eyebrow, indicating that he wasn't quite sure why the foul-tempered monk would even bother querying about his whereabouts…after all; it would mean one less idiot to smack around. Catching the look, Goku sighed and scratched the back of his ear, while placing the other hand on his hip, "You do know you've been in here since we came…aren't you even remotely interested in satisfying your gastrula needs?"

            "Quite, but I'll come down in my own time…where'd you learn to speak all grown-up, by the way?" the redhead asked, eyeing the younger man curiously, as he had never heard a single intelligent-sounding word escape the teen's mouth. The brown-haired teen laughed, and waved the matter away offhandedly.

            "I picked it up off Hakkai, when I was sent to collect you…so you coming?" asked, changing his look of self-pride, into one of annoyance. Gojyo blinked, and seemed to be thinking over his options, then closed the door. Goku blinked in disbelief, and growled in anger, _'Dammit, that asshole…my foods getting cold just because I came here to check on him, well that seals it…next time, I'm not coming up,'_ He opened his mouth to say something, when the door reopened and the redhead walked through it, closing it behind him, and stopped before the youth.

            "I had to get my jacket," he explained to the young youkai's dumb expression, "so…are we going or not, Goku?" he said, prompting the other with a rhetorical question. Goku blinked several times, and nodded, then led the way down to their table in silence. They descended the stairs and turned about, entering the door on the left, leading to the bar and dining area of the inn. The sounds of laughter, conversation and clanging utensils could be heard, as well as the scent of smoke and various aromas wafting through, upon their entry. Immediately, Gojyo's stomach growled, alerting him to just how hungry he was, and amazing him to the fact that he had not realised as he lay in his room. He followed, as Goku led the way to their table, far in the corner and out of the way of the public eye, "Sorry I'm late…lost track of time," he apologised, claiming the only vacant seat, which happened to be between Hakkai and Goku.

            "Glad to know that you're well, Gojyo, we were beginning to worry that something was wrong…weren't we Sanzo," the green-eyed man said, smiling warmly as he did so, and passed the subject on to their blond-haired leader. Sanzo didn't bother looking up from the newspaper he was reading, and snorted as he sipped at his tea. Hakkai's smile turned apologetic, as he shrugged, "Well…what'll you have?" he asked, passing their menu to their new arrival. Gojyo smiled in return, taking the offered menu, and looked about, his brow creased in uncertainty, as he had a vague feeling that someone was watching them. He shrugged, when no one appeared to be looking in their direction, which was uncommon, considering there would have been a few shifty glances passed their way, as the people judged the chosen travelling companions of the almighty Sanzo.

            "Hmm…" he said thoughtfully, looking at the list of available meals and drinks, as well as desserts, "tough choice…but I think I'll have the assorted tempura…a whole batch of rice and the special soup…some nikuman, sake, beer and cake for later," he sighed.

            "Is that all?" Hakkai asked, sipping at his cup of sake, knowing that what the other had ordered was a little over what he normally ate.

            "Yeah, that's all…" he replied, a slight frown upon his brow, then looked up to see a pair of green, unconvinced, yet still silently questioning, eyes, "so I ordered a little over…gotta have some in case the ape tries to sneak a bite," he explained, folding his arms and leaning back, as he took out his current pack of cigarettes, popped one between his lips and lit it. The brown-haired man simply smiled and shrugged, as the young youkai suddenly realised the snide remark sent his way. Gojyo ignored the youth's protests and verbal abuse aimed his way, as he looked about the room again, still unable to shake of the sense of being watched, while Hakkai made their order. He scowled and sighed in frustration, and was about to turn back, when he paused, his eyes just managing to catch a glimpse of a familiar person. The half-breed looked back in the general direction he thought it was, and saw them again, a flash of grey, far in the corner in a similarly out-of-sight location. A smile played on his lips, and he turned back, taking a final drag of his cigarette and put it out, standing just as Hakkai returned. "Hey, is it okay if you can send my order over to that corner," he said, pointing in the direction he was going to.

            "Why?" Sanzo asked, his attention grasped by this sudden and bizarre request, as he craned his neck up to see what had caught the young redheads curiosity. When an immediate answer wasn't given, he locked a demanding gaze onto the pair of red eyes that were still waiting for a reply of their own.

            "Because…I think I spotted someone we know…I'm just gonna go have a chat, if I'm wrong…I'll be back, and you won't have to send the food over," the younger man replied, folding his arms across his chest. The blond monk pursed his lips, obviously thinking about the request, and then sighed, knowing that the kappa would be in a mood later on…besides, just how close did he keep these youkai anyway, they couldn't be fully trusted, and there were still so many things out of place, or so he felt. Maybe he was just keeping them at arms length, because he was afraid…afraid of getting hurt if they betrayed him…well, whatever the reason, now was not the time to think about them.

            "Fine…go ahead, but if you decide to spend the night…and aren't ready by first light tomorrow, we're leaving without you," he snapped, the idea of having to think so deep into the matter having frustrated him. Gojyo smiled and gave a slight nod, then left their table, to walk through the many gaps toward his destination.

~*~

She sat silently, sipping at the hot tea, which the tender had brought, leaving the kettle and the second cup upon her request, and returned to retrieve the rest of her order. She cast a few glances in the general direction of the group she had met earlier, unsure of whether they were the ones she had to seek out, and wondering if this was some game of the gods, making her come across the same people twice in less than a day. She sighed and continued to sip at the warm, milky brown liquid, a hint of honey tickling her tongue, as it washed down into her system. A sudden shadow fell upon her, but she did not look up immediately…though she was startled, she had been trained to display an aura of mysticism, behaving naturally in any situation often gave the impression that you had been expecting such things to happen.

            "Mind if I join you?" came the polite, and almost uncertain question, giving the idea that the owner of the voice was unsure about whether they had approached the right person. A small smile touched her lips, and she took another sip of her tea, then slowly looked up, positioning her head in a way that the wide brim of her hat cast her face in shadow.

            "If there's a vacant seat, then help yourself," she replied, keeping her voice low and deep, so as to keep in line with the façade she had used on their first encounter. The owner of the first voice smiled, and took a seat, directly opposite her, and obscuring her line of sight.

            "You know…you don't have to put up a front," they said, relaxing back in their seat. She frowned, and took a good look at them, he was tall, possibly, since it was hard to tell by the way he was sitting; however his lanky build indicated that he was a tall man. His crimson hair was kept long, and fell past his shoulders, the strands kept out of his face by a deep blue bandanna. His eyes were of the same shade of red, indicating the fact that he was a taboo child…a destiny placed upon him not of his own choosing.

            "What do you mean?" she asked, her tone faltering for a mere moment, before snapping back to its false pitch. He seemed to chuckle then, though silently, and he leaned forward, cocking his head slightly to one side.

            "Come on…you know what I mean, it doesn't take a genius to know that you're really a woman…what have you got to hide?" he whispered, pushing back a stray strand of vermilion from his eyes. She blinked several times, then took a sip of tea, and set the cup down.

            "Would you like some tea?" she asked, resigning to her true tone of voice, clear and gentle. He blinked in surprise, obviously taken aback by the sudden change, "it's laced with honey…unless…you're more of an alcoholic," she continued to say, the last few words rising in their sound, as she hinted to a suggestive thought.

            "N-no, tea is fine…I'm having my order sent here anyway, the name's Gojyo, Sha Gojyo, by the way…and you are?" he said, continuing to lean over the table. She smiled and poured tea into the remaining cup, while refilling hers, and set the new cup towards the half-breed.

            "Ena…as I have told you and your companions before…how come you aren't sitting with them?" she asked, taking up her cup and gently blowing over it, in an effort to make it cool. Gojyo smiled and took up the cup, blew once and took a quick sip.

            "I felt you watching us, I had to find out why…if no one else is, then why were you?" he asked, casting a curious and sharp look towards her, since he had to quell the nagging urge of ripping that wide-brimmed hat off her head. It was her turn to smile and chuckle, as she brought the cup to her lips and took a sip, savouring the taste, and taking her sweet time to answer his question.

            "That's my own reason…" she replied, setting the cup down and making space for her newly arrived order.

~*~*~*~

A/N: APOLOGIES! APOLOGIES! I greatly and immensely apologise for the long wait, I had an evil case of writers block, plus I'm busy with school/exam stuff and some stories I intend to publish someday…but that's no excuse for abandoning these online projects I have set myself. Hopefully, in a few more days I'll have Chapter: 5 up, but I'm not sure when this will be finished…maybe around the 10th or so Chapter…who knows, anyways, please keep up the golden quality of patience, which you are all blessed with, and the rewards will come, thank you and please forgive me.


	5. Chapter: 5

A Fools Dream

~Chapter: 5~

He awoke at the sound of sharp knocking on the door to his room, and groaned irritably as he grabbed his pillow and placed it over his head, trying to stuff out the incessant noise. He prayed – something he didn't normally do – that the knocking would just stop, allowing himself to get the needed extra hours of sleep…but no, the gods were not kind to him this day, _'Since when have they ever been…'_ he wondered, then ripped the pillow away, as he turned onto his back, wincing in pain as the sudden burst of light seared through his tired mind, through the windows which were his eyes. He opened them again, this time slower so as to limit the amount of light entering at a time, then rose into a sitting position, after having adjusted to the brightness.

            "Dammit! I'm up already, quit with the knocking!" he exclaimed, hoping that the one making the noise would hear his voice above the sound, and stop their rapping…but no, the call had been to no avail. Gojyo's face drew down from a frown of annoyance, to a perplexed look, and then rubbed his head as he thought about what action to take on the infernal knocker. Coming to a suitable idea, he came to his feet, pulled on his trousers, and zipped it up, leaving the top button open, and not bothering to pull on a shirt or neaten his appearance in any way, since this first problem needed to be settled first. He made his way to the door and swung it open, causing the young Goku to pause in his knocking, and take in the other's appearance. The half-breed had an unreadable expression; giving the impression that he was not quite fully awake, and by the way he was dressed…it seemed to add some truth to his suspicions.

            "Gojyo…" the young youkai began normally, then paused as he saw that something seemed to shine behind the possibly pseudo-glazed look of the older mans eyes, "er…Gojyo…" he began again, this time more tentatively. Suddenly, a tanned arm shot out, the hand grasping the collar of the brown-haired teen, who yelped in surprise as he was dragged into the crimson-haired man's room. "Gojyo!" he exclaimed, digging his feet into the carpeted floor, only to find that it had no effect, "let go of me! Sanzo sent me, and I never go against his words!" he exclaimed, struggling to get free of the tight grip at his neck. Suddenly the dragging stopped, and he found himself being flung through the air, his eyes snapping open as he landed on his side on something soft. He flipped onto his back, propping himself on to his elbows, his eyes wide in shock and worry, as they met the phased-out gaze of the half-breed, "Gojyo!" he said, trying to get the older man out of his hazy state of mind. Gojyo didn't seem to respond and proceeded to lean towards the young man, who struggled futilely to push himself away, only to feel the others strong grip clamp about his wrists, then shoulders, pinning him down, "Ah! Gojyo! What do you think you're doing?!" he cried out, just as the mans face came a little to close for comfort to his own. Unable to bear what could happen next, Goku clenched his eyes shut, turning his head away, as he tried to bury it deep between his shoulders.

            "I'm doing this," came the gentle reply, which was so close to his exposed ear, the youth could feel the light breath blow over it, playing gently through the tufts of hair around that area. His eyes flew open and he turned his head to look up in shock, only to feel something being tightly wrapped about his slim form. "There…that should do it," came the satisfied announcement of the half-breed, as he stepped back to survey his handiwork. Goku struggled against the unknown bonds that prohibited the movement of his arms and legs, grunting with the effort, and then became slack as he placed a vehement gaze upon the redhead, who was making his way towards the bathroom.

            "Hey, asshole! What'd you do to me?!" he demanded, lying bound as he was to the bed…a sudden thought occurred to him then, "Hey! Let me off of your bed! I don't know what you've been up to in here, and I don't want to be anywhere near where you've been, now let me off!" Gojyo turned to look at the protesting teen, one hand at his hip, while the other hung limply by his side.

            "Look, you unceremoniously woke me up from my sleep, so what I've done is tie you up in my bed sheets, and I'm quite proud of the way I did it, considering the way you were squirming…oh, and monkey-boy, my bed's clean, nothing happened in there, apart from a few fags being puffed, now stay there like a good ape and shut the hell up!" he said, then turned and continued towards the bathroom, ignoring the barrage of exclamations and profanities which followed him, and slammed the door shut. 

The young youkai continued to yell at the closed door for some time, until he lapsed into mental cursing and evil thoughts of what he could do in revenge for this injustice. Many minutes passed, with him trapped as he was, listening to whatever the older man was up to in the bathroom, then the door flung open, revealing a seemingly freshly washed and groomed Gojyo, wiping at his face with a towel. Goku watched as the half-breed went straight to his somewhat neat pile of remaining clothes, and began to pull on his white vest and blue jacket. He then proceeded to tend to his hair, then tied the bandanna up, around his forehead, then headed to the door, whistling to himself. The young youkai grit his teeth in anger and frustration, and once again struggled against his bonds, but to no avail.

            "Hey, shithead! Are you gonna release me or not?!" he cried, his face heating up in anger. Catching the words, Gojyo turned about, pausing in his whistling and placing Goku with a gaze that seemed to say he had completely forgotten about the bound youth. He folded his arms, cupping his chin with one hand, as he seemed to think for a while.

            "Um…nope," he said simply, opening his eyes as he came out of his moment of thought. He folded his arms behind his head, and continued to walk out the door, whistling to himself, leaving Goku still lying on the bed, bound as he was, shaking in anger.

            "Gojyo! Get back here and untie me, now!" he cried, then began to shuffle more violently, as he tried to get off of the bed and make his way to the outside. He knew Gojyo had left the vicinity, clearly ignoring him, and so he mustered enough strength to urge himself to roll over, and continued rolling until he hit the floor of the room, landing on his back and gritting his teeth against the pain that shot through him. He opened his eyes to see the ceiling, then rolled over onto his belly, and began to worm his way as best he could, considering the way he was bound, towards the door. Upon reaching the doorway, he looked down both ends of the corridor, and caught sight of a plume of crimson bobbing down the stairs to his right, which led to the restaurant and bar, as well as the outside. 

The young youkai grit his teeth and mustered his strength once more, feeling his anger rise and using it to fuel him, as he wormed his way towards the stairs, and looked down, _'Dammit…this'll probably hurt more than I'm expecting, otherwise I'd walk or hop down, but I can't…damn you Gojyo!'_ he thought, then drew in a breath to steady himself, and took the final few spaces, and tumbled down noisily. He cried out many times, but managed to keep himself in a somewhat safe position, then landed heavily at the bottom of the stairs, groaning in pain as he lay on his side, every part of himself aching painfully.

            "Damn, you're determined, aren't you," came the mocking statement from above him, as the youth continued to steady himself after the fall he had taken. Goku's head snapped up at the voice, and his anger flared once more.

            "This is your doing, jerk-off!" he yelled, only to have the half-breed begin to laugh at him. "Hey, where do you think you're going?!" he demanded, as Gojyo turned away and began to head to the restaurant.

            "I'm going to get myself some food," he replied, and then continued walking towards his destination, _'Better make it a takeaway…or Sanzo'll kill me…not that it'll bother me, I guess,'_ he thought, as he walked straight to the counter and leant against it, waiting to be served. A young, female waitress came over to him, blushing lightly as he flashed her a dashing smile, as he placed his breakfast order. She bowed politely and hurried away to deal with his request, as he craned his neck to watch her leave…it was shame he couldn't make much out of her figure, considering she was dressed in a formal kimono. He jumped suddenly, sucking in a sharp breath as he felt something nudge violently against his leg, and looked down only to find a rather large sized brown-thing at his feet, "What the hell…" he began, then blinked several times as the thing looked up at him through a pair of very angry gold eyes, "oh…it's you…what do you want?" he asked rather nonchalantly, turning his attention to the door where the girl had disappeared. 

Goku's glare turned darker than it was before, and looked at Gojyo's shin, he grimaced, but for now…the act would please him very much. The half-breed cried out in pain and shock, as the young youkai bit hard into his shin, the teeth digging in as deep as they could. He jumped away, crying out louder as Goku's mass followed him, and knelt down to grab at the youth's hair, tugging at it with all his might, "Damn you, you asshole! Get your stinking teeth out of my leg, quit biting on it!" he cried out, and then seeing that tugging on the other's hair was doing nothing, he turned his attention to Goku's mouth, and began to pull at his cheeks. The young youkai resisted the assault on his cheeks for some time, but soon found that he could not withstand it any longer, and released his dental grip, moaning in light relief as the crimson-haired man released his hold on the others cheeks just as quickly. "Okay, fine…you made your point…" he said, rubbing his stinging shin rapidly, in an effort to comfort it. He stood up, grabbing Goku by the gathering of his collar at his neck, and hoisted him up to his feet.

            "Um…excuse me, here's your order, sir," came the meek words of the young woman, who had taken his order. Gojyo looked up, turning his attention away from the young youkai, and smiled gratefully at the girl, expressing his thanks as he took the bag and paid for it, then began to head towards the Inn's entrance, which would lead him to the rest of his group. Goku stared after him in disbelief; his jaw hanging open, then began to hop after him in heated pursuit.

            "Hey, Gojyo! You said you'd release me!" he yelled, continuing to hop towards the open door, where Gojyo seemed to have stopped. He too came to a halt beside him and looked up to study the other's expression, and saw that he was staring at Sanzo's direction, who happened to be talking with someone dressed in grey robes, similar to Sanzo's pale-yellow ones. They wore a wide-brimmed hat, making it difficult to tell what they looked like, "You staring at them? Well…it seems like they're still talking…wonder what about though," the youth commented, looking back up at Gojyo, who appeared to have regained himself and marched towards the pair.

            "Mind telling me what you're up to, Ena?" he asked, as he came to a stop behind the woman he had been talking to the night before. Sanzo flashed him a warning look, which indicated that should the half-breed continue to anger him in this way, then there'd be some serious disciplining going on. Gojyo ignored the look, and continued to set his attention on the one he was addressing, who looked up at him and seemed to smile under the hat, "and take that hat off, it's annoying me,"

            "Ah…Gojyo, you shouldn't interrupt them, they seemed to be having a rather important discussion," Hakkai said, from where he stood by the Inn door, the small white form of Hakuryuu perched upon his shoulder. Gojyo cast a quick look over his shoulder to the dark-haired man, and turned to meet Sanzo's very forced plain gaze, as he effectively kept his anger in check, _'Hmm…gotta give him points for that…even I can't tell if he's phased out, or pissed off…he's good,'_ the redhead thought, then shrugged as he stepped back.

            "Okay, I'll wait my turn then…the honour's all yours Sanzo," he said simply, then walked back to join Hakkai, leaning against the wall beside his friend. Ena watched as he walked away, a small smile playing on her features, then her hands came up to her hat, one hand taking hold of the strap under her chin, and the other holding onto part of the brim.

            "You're right…it's a little sunny out, so may as well take the thing off," she said, and removed it, letting free long locks of soft brown hair, which fell just past he shoulder blades. Gojyo stared for a bit, his mouth slightly open, then closed it as he remembered the previous night…the way she seemed to be a little suspicious. He turned his head to catch Hakkai studying him and scowled, while the other smiled and chuckled to himself, turning his attention to other matters. "Well, Sanzo…where were we…" she wondered, placing her simple dark-brown eyes upon him, "ah yes…I was wondering if it was possible for me to accompany your troop for a while…only to a few towns, and I'll gladly help in any way I can along the way," she said, smiling politely as she did so. Sanzo continued to look at her, mulling over the idea, then flashed his gaze upon the three youkai, trying to discern any ideas from their expressions.

            "I'm afraid…that our journey is quite perilous…and we don't actually have enough room for, Goku! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" he snapped, catching the young boy rubbing against the wooden pole, which lead to the entrance to the Inn.

            "I'm trying to weaken these bonds…Gojyo tied me up, and he won't release me," he explained, frustration colouring his words as he had had enough of waiting around for a service, which appeared to never be fulfilled.

            "Oh…maybe I can help," came Ena's offer, as she walked over to the young youkai, her hat strapped to her right forearm, as the hand gripped the hilt of her wooden weapon. Goku watched in curiosity, as she turned it, and pulled free the blade sheathed within. His eyes opened wide, then snapped shut, as she performed a quick upward slash, then returned the blade to its sheath, "There, that should do it," then the bonds fell away, freeing the youth. Feeling the absence of the tight bindings, Goku's eyes flew open and he inspected himself, then looked upon the brown-haired woman and smiled gratefully, his eyes watering over.

            "Thank you so much!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms about her in a grateful embrace, to which she returned by placing her hands upon his shoulders, "Sanzo! We have to take her with us, the least we can do is escort her to her destination," the youth said, pulling away and looking towards his friend and mentor. 

"Ha, being set free from his bonds, and he already feels indebted to someone…" Gojyo muttered, the words barely audible as he turned his head away from the scene in front of him. The monk closed his eyes, a light twitch passing over his brow, as he thought about the number of times he'd been in this situation, and then sighed.

            "Hakkai…" he said slowly, his arms folded as he turned to face away from the others.

            "Yes, Sanzo," came the reply, as the dark-haired youkai stepped forward, holding Hakuryuu in his arms, preparing for the inevitable decision of setting up to continue their journey.

            "Any ideas? Think we can afford to take Ena with us?" he asked, his back still turned to them, which made it hard to tell his expression, since his tone of voice was unusually calm.

            "Um…yeah, I think so…I doubt she'll be much of a burden, considering she was able to hold her own against those youkai for a good while," he replied at length, a little surprised by the asking of his opinion.

            "Then let's set out to leave…" he said, the words coming out a little weary, _'Damn…I hate it when I'm like this, I'm just so tired of bending to someone's will because of the outcome of defecting,'_ he thought a little bitterly, considering the journey he was on now, was of someone's will…not exactly his own.


	6. Chapter: 6

A Fools Dream

Chapter: 6

They were driving now…or rather; Hakkai was driving now, taking the four of them, plus their temporary passenger towards their destination, and aiming for a stop along the way to a town, some miles away. Despite the crazy way of driving, the receptive youkai had, Gojyo had to be honest with himself, he loved the way the wind blew through his hair, it was a good relaxant sometimes, but not something to rely upon. The sound of light, lilting laughter caught his attention, and he looked to see Ena, a passenger he was not too keen on taking with them, laughing along with Goku, obviously about something the latter had said. He wondered why they were bringing her with them, but Sanzo's word was word, and his reasons were his reasons…something he didn't wish to challenge, unless he was willing to have some cranial ventilation installed any time soon.

He kept his vision set in a way that it appeared as though he was looking off into the distance, when he was actually studying the interaction between Goku and the woman, her soft brown hair blowing in the makeshift wind. The young youkai was sitting in the middle; his back turned towards the half-breed as he spoke animatedly with their new passenger, who listened intently to whatever the teen was talking about. He continued to watch for some time, wondering where on earth she had the patience to listen to the youth's ramblings, when the sudden and subtle turn of her attention caught him off guard. Her deep, brown eyes flashed towards him, and he blinked and turned away, focusing his attention on the darkening horizon, signalling the drawing of nightfall. _'Looks like we're camping out tonight…guess it'll be nice under the stars every so often…'_ he thought, as he leaned back in his seat, folding his arms behind his head, and gazed up at the reddish-orange of the sky, bearing the slightest hint of purple-blue.

He continued to gaze into the depthless sky above, his thoughts wandering…it was too windy to have a cigarette, considering if he wanted to light one, he'd most likely choke on the smoke and ash, or the item itself would fly out of his hand, carried away, never to be smoked in its short life. Against his will, his mind went back to Sanzo and his odd decision…as far as he was concerned, the woman wasn't worth their time, considering she had lied to them when they first met, then behaved in a very suspicious manner when he had confronted her, and according to Goku, she had waited for Sanzo outside the inn since early morning, and upon sighting him requested his audience, and supposedly apologised for the earlier events that had taken place between them. Now, she was travelling with them to some destination she didn't wish to disclose, _'I don't care if he blows my head open, I need to confront him about this…something's not right, and I need to know what's up with him,'_ the redhead thought, his mind set on the goal to find answers, even if he had to wait a long time.

* * *

The popping crackle of the gathered wood sounded, vaguely heard above the sounds of Goku filling his belly, as they burned, consumed in an effort to keep the dancing, mesmerising orange-yellow flames, which reached towards the sky, offering the warmth it produced to those gathered about the small pyre. Gojyo was eating, what he could manage to get a hold of, in silence, every so often shooting a dark glare towards the young youkai, who seemed to have sprouted a few extra arms, thus leading to a rapid decline in the night's meal. Sanzo sat in silence, having eaten his fill, and was now debating with himself, on whether to intervene with the inevitable confrontation that the two still eating were going to have. 

He drew the hand holding his lit cigarette away, holding the mix of flavours for a little longer, then slowly exhaled as he turned his attention to Hakkai, who like him had eaten his fill, and was now tending to his small, winged friend. He studied the two of them, an odd pair…a man and his dragon, sort of raised the question on how the two met, but he didn't feel like troubling himself, and to be honest…didn't quite care, so long as things were agreeable between them. His violet eyes continued to wander, then suddenly snagged upon the sight of grey, against the darkening shade of brown of a tree. He focused on the object, and saw they were robes, which led onto the young face of a woman. She had chosen to sit away from the group, finding a suitable spot under a tree some way away, seeking warmth from a simple woollen blanket, as she sipped at the honey-laced tea she had brought with her in a flask. Her wide-brimmed hat lay beside her, propped upon her weapon that was placed into the earth. She would often look up, gazing through the branches, catching small peaks of the dark sky above, dotted with the white lights of the stars, her expression unreadable from this point of view.

Sanzo continued to watch her, wondering why he had allowed her to travel with them…of course he had sought Hakkai's opinion, but still…there was something…something about her that seemed a bit off, and he intended to find out what it was. His attention was caught suddenly, as the green-eyed man beside him stood up, having been watching the same woman. He watched as the other proceeded to walk towards her, Hakuryuu perched above his shoulders, _'Guess there's always next time…'_ he thought, then continued to draw on the cigarette.

* * *

"Hi," came the pleasant greeting, voiced by one whose tone was gentle and kind. Ena's attention was caught, pulling her gaze from the stars above, and looked upon the smiling features of Cho Hakkai. She smiled in return, and nodded, allowing him to take a seat beside her, as the white dragon moved from his shoulders to his lap, "Nice night, huh…" he said, trailing off as he too looked up. The brown-haired woman smiled, and giggled silently, then nodded in agreement. 

"Yep…can't see much from here though…but all the same, it's a nice night," she commented, looking up for a short while, before bringing her eyes down and meeting his kind gaze. She looked away from his eyes, and saw Hakuryuu, it's head cocked to one side as it studied her.

"How come you're here…on your own?" he asked, his tone similar to that of a child coming over to speak with another, who is on their own, while everyone else is together. Ena didn't answer the question immediately, instead she reached out a hand and stroked the fine hairs along the small dragons neck, laughing lightly as it took pleasure from the contact, pushing its head further into her palm.

"It's so cute…" she cooed, then looked up to meet Hakkai's patient gaze, "…I like being on my own…" she answered at length, withdrawing her hand as she placed it in her lap, "…allows me to sort out my thoughts and think about things…tell me…why did you come here?" The green-eyed man seemed to be taken aback by the sudden question, and brought a hand up to cup his chin as he thought.

"Hmm…to be honest, I just didn't like the idea of you being alone…Sanzo has Gojyo and Goku," he replied, and as if on cue, the angered tones of the blond monk resounded, along with highly audible sounds of impact, coupled with cries of pain and protest could be heard, as the two youkai were struck with the paper fan. "Haha, guess they were fighting again…oh well, where was I…ah yes, as I was saying, Sanzo's got those two…and well, you haven't really got anyone, I understand it's hard…being with four men, or rather three men and an adolescent, but…don't isolate yourself, okay…" he continued to say, then drifted off as he caught Ena's kind and grateful smile.

"I appreciate it Hakkai…but that isn't the case…" she replied, the smile still on her features, but wilting slightly as she gazed off behind them, towards the small group, where Sanzo continued to dish out some physical abuse, in order to discipline the two. She lost her train of thought as she continued to study them, finding some source of humour from the scene.

"Then what is it?" the dark-haired man asked, catching her attention once again. Ena paused for a moment, trying to remember what had been said earlier, then the sad smile returned, and she continued to explain.

"I think I'm destined to be alone…otherwise I'll only bring pain, also…we kind of started on the wrong foot, and I don't think I've made up for it yet…" she turned away from his gaze, and chose to look off into the distance, watching the swaying of the branches and listening to the rustle of the leaves, as the light breeze played through the trees opposite her. A gentle hand rested upon her shoulder, and she turned to see the kind man smiling softly, finding humour in her words.

"Nonsense…you lied to protect yourself, don't worry about it…believe me, I'm sure we'd all like to get to know you better…even if it's hard to tell," he said, allowing his hand to move away from her and rest atop Hakuryuu's back. Ena's deep brown eyes looked up at him, unspoken surprise marking her features, as what he said sunk in. He accepted her, regardless of his comrades, and yet…he spoke for them, believing that even if they chose not to show it openly, except for Goku, they would actually enjoy her company…even if it was temporary.

"H-Hakkai…please, don't say such things-" she began to say, but was cut off, as the green-eyed man raised a hand, and placed her with a sad gaze _'A person who has committed as much evils as I…does not deserve the chance I was given…who would ever like to know who I am, or was…I doubt Kanan would welcome me, now…'_ he thought, then smiled warmly, causing the sad expression to last only a few moments, as he brightened a bit.

"Now… how old are you? How is it that you fight so well? Who raised you, and why do you travel about dressed as a monk? These are questions, which we four are thinking about…" he said, then paused, bringing up a hand to his chin, as he thought aloud, "well…I hope Goku is thinking about the same thing, poor child, usually thinks about food…anyway," he started again, coming out of his moment of thought, "we're curious to know about those main things…so when you're ready, start your introduction by answering those questions, okay," he explained, smiling politely, and ending his small tutorial on what the four of them needed to know. Ena stared silently at him, words failing her as she tried to reply to them here and now. He watched her reaction to his words, and couldn't help but laugh lightly…_'Such a beautiful sound…'_ she thought, causing herself to turn away and blush lightly, "There's no need to answer now, as I said when you're ready, then answer them," he said, then came to his feet, after allowing Hakuryuu to take up its perch upon his shoulder. He dusted at his behind and turned towards the others, who were preparing to turn in for the night, "Anyway, I'll see you in the morning, sleep well," he ended, and then began to walk away, leaving her company.

* * *

A/N: Hmm…for some reason I feel that this chapter turned out worse than I wanted it to…maybe a minor setback, considering the exams I have coming up…anyways, hope it was alright


	7. Chapter: 7

A Fools Dream

Chapter: 7

The scent of blood was strong in the air…the iron filling the scent receptors of the nose, causing the head to spin and the body to go weak with need. The desire for more was too strong, they were barely aware of the ghostly echoes…reverberating screams of those who had donated their lives for this addictive sense. Their mouth watered at the enticing abundance that surrounded them…wanting more spillage to satisfy the dark needs within.

A sudden sound caught their attention…something which broke the sacred atmosphere, interrupting the silent echoes. There it was again…a stifled whimper, choked even…then the startling tracks of something warm tracing their way down their face. A smile broke across their crimson stained face, forming cracks on the dry blood…all the while the whimpers continued, then rose in pitch and became laughter – malicious and vile in its character. Their head was thrown back as they continued to laugh at their act, then suddenly it became choked and a hand clutched at their throat as they staggered, and fell to their knees. Their body began to convulse as some kind of battle raged within, their face rose skyward, as the back arched and their fingers dug into their scalp, a cry escaping them which reverberated about them, ringing for some distance, then they went slack, doubled over.

* * *

She felt her body shuddering as she sobbed, warm tears tracing their way down her face, only to drip down and land into her lap, forming a wet-patch in her robes that clung to her thighs. She became aware of the tangy scent in the air…completely unfamiliar with it, and raised her face, slowly opening her eyes and allowing them to focus on her surroundings.

* * *

Ena's eyes snapped open and she threw herself up into a sitting position, breathing heavily, as she tried to steady herself. A momentary black slate hanging before her minds eye, then the images rushed forth, completing the visions she had seen moments before. She felt something rise up within her, and she gagged, diving out of her tent and scrambling her way as far as she could, before retching, the digested contents of her stomach forcing their way through and forming a strong-smelling, soupy puddle in the grass.

She struggled to breathe and coughed up any stragglers in her throat between vomits, cringing at the terrible aftertaste, only to continue as soon as the haunting and disturbing images flashed by. Soon enough there was nothing left, and she was forced to continue gagging as the thoughts swam through her. When she finally came to a stop, the tears continued to fall and were soon accompanied by sobs, as she grieved for the victims in her vision, knowing that the events were true and had already happened.

She had lost track of how long she had stayed there, simply crying openly, gasping for breath when she needed to. When she felt that she had nothing left to give as physical grievance, she came to her feet, her movements indicating the absence of her reactive mind. The sounds of running water became apparent to her, and she made her way automatically towards its source. She continued to draw closer to the sound, and broke through the trees and bushes, coming to the banks of a flowing river. Ena walked towards it and knelt, plunging her face into the cool rush, feeling the liquid cleansing her face and hair. She pulled her face out and shook it, then scooped water into her mouth and spitting it out into the nearby brush.

Once she was done, the young woman came to her feet, her dull mind registering the few rays of light beginning to appear, heralding the early morning of a new day. She turned about, walking back the way she came, towards the place the four would probably be waiting for her. In her current state of mind, she could care less, it didn't matter whether they had left or not…they would soon be memories anyway, and memories didn't last forever…already she could feel them beginning to disappear.

"Ah, here she is," a cheerful and kind voice announced in relief, as she came into their view, "good morning," they greeted.

"Ena!" another, more energetic voice called out, the owner seeming to be running towards her, as she came to a dazed stop. "Hey, Ena…are you okay?" they asked, coming to a stop before her, noticing her blank and empty expression, "hey…answer me…" they urged softly, becoming a little worried.

"Leave her alone, will you…she probably doesn't want to be bothered by your troublesome manner," a third person retorted, their tone mocking in its manner. The second speaker ignored the words, and reached out their hands, placing them on her shoulders.

"Please…what's wrong?" they asked, their tone still soft and coloured with worry. When no immediate answer came, they gently shook her form, the motion beginning to stir something within. She felt she knew them, these people…her mind began to awaken slowly, as she tried to place these voices, "Hey, Hakkai, can you see if she's okay?" the person asked. With this question and plea for help, her mind came awake, and she was able to recognise these people.

"Goku…?" she said, her tone of voice hinting at some uncertainty. The young boy turned and looked up at the sound of his name, smiling in relief, as he noted the change in her appearance. She managed a weak smile in return, as she looked into the golden eyes, surrounded by brown locks, "I'm sorry if I worried you," she said, her smile becoming apologetic as she placed a hand upon the youths head, and looked up to meet the gazes of the other three. Sanzo simply tutted, as he went back to smoking his cigarette, while Gojyo sighed and went back to packing his tent up. Hakkai smiled in acknowledgement, and went back to focusing on the breakfast. Ena laughed lightly, then remembered that she had to pack her belongings up as well, and looked about to locate them, only to find them neatly placed under the tree she had been at the night before, "Who…?" she began to ask, but looked down as she felt the young youkai step back and heard his light laughter.

"I took care of it, all you have to do is place them in Hakuryuu when we're ready to set off," he explained, then took hold of her hand, "come, join us, Hakkai's cooking is the best, you have to try it," he said, and began to lead her towards the rest of the group. She laughed in an amused and nervous manner, as he pulled her along, then stopped, indicating for her to take a seat, which she did, as she saw no way to avoid this. Once she had sat down, Goku occupied the space between her and Sanzo, smiling brightly as he anticipated the morning meal – the enticing aromas playing with his desires. The young woman watched in amusement, then looked up as the half-breed came and took a seat opposite her and promptly lit up a cigarette, drawing on its vapours. As he did so, his crimson eyes flashed upwards, meeting her gaze in a sharp manner, which was broken as she realised she had been caught staring.

"Right, breakfast is ready," the green-eyed youkai announced, to which Goku cheered openly. Hakkai laughed in amused fashion, as he brought the steaming pot over and placed it in the middle, the evident anticipation of the meal gleaming on the youths face. Continuing to smile, the cook began to ladle out the breakfast, handing out steaming bowls to each person and Hakuryuu, before helping himself, "Oh, if anyone wants seconds or more, help yourself, okay," he said, handing out buns that had softened from the heat of the pot.

Expressing their gratitude, everyone began to eat their meal, and almost immediately an argument began to manifest itself, as both Gojyo and Goku began to fight over who should get the next helping first. Sanzo was evidently beginning to get irritated at this, for even now he couldn't eat a meal in peace. He grit his teeth, as the two continued bickering, throwing insults back and forth, then intervened, whacking the two across the head with the paper fan.

"Shut up the both of you! Can't you eat your damn breakfast in peace?!" he yelled, the evident threat of granting the two a painful death, should they continue on like this, visible in his violet eyes. The two growled angrily at each other, while rubbing their aching heads, and then resumed eating their meals. Hakkai smiled in amusement, and prepared to spoon some of his breakfast into his mouth, when Ena's bowl caught his attention.

"Are you okay?" he asked, noticing that she had simply been staring into the contents of the bowl, without disturbing it once. She stared blankly for some time, and then it appeared as though something had registered and she turned her attention towards the green-eyed man.

"Sorry?" she asked, shaking her head slightly to clear it of whatever was preoccupying her mind. Hakkai smiled and chuckled lightly.

"I asked if you were okay…you don't seem too well, and you haven't touched your meal," he said, indicating her still full bowl. Ena blinked and looked at her bowl, then looked back up, smiling in return.

"I'm sorry…the meal looks very delicious…but I'm afraid…I'm not all that hungry," she apologised, the smile melting away as her expression became sad. The dark-haired man blinked and set his bowl down then placed a hand upon her forehead and one on his own.

"Hmm…you do seem a little under the weather…" he commented, comparing her temperature with his, then folded his arms as he leant back a bit and appraised her appearance, "did you get enough sleep last night?"

"W-why do you ask?" Ena stammered, turning her face away slightly as the events of the previous night flashed through her mind.

"Just that you seem a little pale…and troubled by something-" Hakkai's reply was cut short, as the young woman set her bowl aside and stood up. The sudden movement caught the attention of the other three travellers, as they looked up over the rim of their bowls to watch the scene.

"I'm sorry, but I think I need a little space," she said, bowing for a moment, "thank you for the meal," she added, then straightened and walked away towards her belongings.

"E-Ena," Goku said, looking up from his bowl and watching her go. His brow furrowed when she didn't answer him, and he turned back to read the expressions on the other three men.

"Was it something you said, Hakkai?" Gojyo asked, taking another bite from his bowl. The green-eyed man couldn't and didn't answer, as he watched her sit down, her back against the bark of the tree. After a few moments, she drew her knees up, hugging them to her chest as she rested the side of her face against them, looking off into the distance, away from the dining males. Sanzo cast a glance at the full bowl that was left behind, and then looked up as he noticed Hakkai resuming his meal, and continued with his own, making a mental note to think about how long she should stay with them.


	8. Chapter: 8

A Fools Dream

Chapter: 8

They were seated in their usual places in the jeep, silence hung over the passengers and driver, which replaced the previous days light mood. Hakkai was driving at a steady, but fast, pace – an indicator that his mind was elsewhere. Sanzo sat quietly in his seat, trying to sleep, but to no avail as the dead silence was irritating him. Gojyo sat on the right side of the jeep, behind Hakkai, his chin resting in his hand, as he gazed out over the passing plains. Ena sat quietly, on the left side, barely aware of everything, as her mind floated elsewhere. Young Goku sat between the two, uncomfortable with the silence, yet afraid to break it; for fear that his words would fall upon deaf ears, or worse. He sighed, and looked up at the road ahead, a bored expression upon his face, which suddenly changed as his eyes widened at the scene up ahead. His golden eyes flicked towards the driver, who seemed to be continuing on, not noticing what he had come to see.

"Hakkai!" Goku cried suddenly, standing up in his seat, as he leaned over to grab the back of the drivers' seat. Shocked out of his musings, the dark-haired man came to a startled halt, causing everyone to lurch forwards in their seats, accompanied with cries and curses of disgruntled surprise. All eyes turned on Goku, two pairs menacing, one pair questioning and the last pair following the direction the youth was pointing in. Before a word could be uttered, Ena took hold of her weapon and jumped out of the jeep, taking off towards the disturbance that had caught the golden-eyed youth's eye. Not long after, Goku also took off, following in the woman's footsteps, leaving the three men to gaze after them.

The scene that met them was a one-sided battle, consisting of about a dozen youkai or so, all ganging up one person. Scattered about the place were a few downed youkai, presumably fallen at the hands of the person who was now backing away from the group, their posture ready to counter the enemy's first move.

Noting that the one fighting the youkai appeared unarmed, Hakkai wordlessly stepped out of the jeep, closing the door before making his way to the battle. Watching his best friend leave to join, Gojyo sighed and muttered something about how it wasn't their fight and that if Ena wanted to poke her nose in, she could…it wasn't their problem, but all the same he too stood up and exited the jeep. Thus Sanzo was left behind, to watch as the four of them were getting closer to their destination. He grit his teeth in frustration, it was that woman's fault…but then again Goku was equally to blame, he was the one to have brought it to their attention. Watching as Ena landed the first blow, he sighed and climbed out of the jeep…he was going to have to have a word with their troublesome passenger.

-o-

Letting out a cry, Ena swung her sheathed weapon at the nearest youkai, who cried out in pain as the weapon impacted with the side of their head. She glanced quickly at the person she had come to aid, only to focus her attention onto an attack aimed her way. She ducked her head out of the way, and shoulder-rushed the attacker, ramming the hilt of her weapon into the chest of another youkai, who had hoped for a cheap shot. Looking up in time, she managed to jump out of the way of an axe that a youkai had hoped to embed somewhere in her body. Before she could punish the attempt, a red, golden-ended pole slammed across the youkai's head, downing it instantly. She looked up to meet a pair of golden eyes, which twinkled momentarily with a companionate smile, before turning their attention to an oncoming youkai.

The battle ensued, with youkai coming up from every possible direction, and still the three fighters fought on. At some point, Hakkai had joined the fray, blasting at an airborne youkai with his Qi Gong, thus rescuing an occupied Goku from an overhead blow. Gojyo too entered the battle, knocking down and brutalising foolish attackers with his Shakujou, and then fell into position with his two comrades and Ena. Upon sighting the formation, a few youkai came to a confused halt, frowning as they looked over their uninvited foes, which were occupied with some of their allies.

"Sanzo company?" one of the youkai asked, who apparently was blond and blue-eyed, a shade that stood out against his brown skin.

"Yeah, what of it?" Gojyo replied, throwing in a question of his own, as he pushed back his assailant, who in turn stumbled back to join his still-standing comrades. The little group of surviving youkai stared at the four presumed to be the Sanzo company, their former foe forgotten.

"Where's your Sanzo? Did you lose h-" before the question could be finished; the purple-haired youkai that had spoken this time was shot straight between the eyes, the gunshot resounding through the silence. A click resounded, as the gun was prepared again, and all eyes turned to meet the blond monk.

"The Sanzo is right here…" he said, cocking the gun at his next victim, "and I didn't get lost…they'd have been the ones I'd have told to bugger off," he indicated the group of four, one of whom seeming to be a little surprised to see the monk joining them. The blond youkai grit his teeth in anger, he hadn't counted on the monk being this much of a smart-ass…that and he had just killed one of his comrades, not that the deaths of the others didn't count any less.

"Die!" he cried, launching himself at the violet-eyed monk, only to be killed as the bullet did a through-and-through. Watching the death of two of their allies at the hands one monk and his banishing gun, the rest of the youkai charged in with battle cries of their own.

The Sanzo company, Ena and the person they had come to aid looked upon the charging youkai with varying expressions of exasperation, then took up arms, preparing to defend themselves. Screams and grunts filled the air as the opposing sides clashed, fighting with their respective styles.

Ena rammed her elbow into the gut of an oncoming youkai, and prepared to follow up by slicing the assailant, only to find that the hilt of her blade wouldn't budge. She looked up in alarm, noticing that her attacker was already beginning to recover, and so tried to unsheathe her weapon in a more desperate manner. Just as she heard the soft click of the blade beginning to slide out, her eyes widened as a pained gasp escaped her. Her eyes slowly travelled upwards, meeting the triumphant smirk of the youkai she was facing off against. Her breath caught in her throat, as the demon before her slid the dagger out of her body, from where it was buried in her abdomen. She staggered back a bit, her breath rattling a little as she struggled to breathe, her hands clasped about the wound. Her eyes widened once again, all she could do was watch as the youkai spun about, slashing her across the chest.

Her vision began to cloud over, as she felt herself beginning to fall. She heard her name being called out, and the cry of the youkai as it was banished. As she landed upon the ground beneath her, she managed to catch a glimpse of red, a gruff voice muttering curses in regards to her incompetence, and then everything went black.

-o-

Pain…she was in pain…her body ached all over, and certain parts of her screamed out to her groggy mind. She worked her jaw, grimacing at the iron substance that coated her mouth…then she became aware of a particular scent. A scent that had hung heavily in the air once before…a scent that was associated with events she didn't want to remember. However her desires were ignored, as the mental images flashed through her mind, causing her brow to furrow. She began to flail as the horrors increased in their intensity, red blood splattered everywhere among those images. Suddenly something weighed itself down upon her, preventing the movement of her arms and legs. She struggled against whatever it was, terrified that whoever…whatever it was, was out to do her harm. Menacing laughter filled her mind, a deep throaty bellow mixed in with a young child's twinkling tone. She had reached her limit, she could take no more, the thing wasn't budging and it was becoming difficult for her to breathe…the darkness was going to claim her once more.

She cried out suddenly, and then felt herself being slammed back down upon the ground, the impact causing her head to spin. Slowly she became aware of her name being gently called out, the voice coming from somewhere above her. Her eyes slowly opened, fuzzy images dancing before them. She closed her eyes and shook her head a little, then opened them again, becoming aware of two tanned arms placed upon her shoulders. She squinted her eyes a little to sharpen her vision, and then continued her visual trek upwards. The person who had her pinned down was also on top of her, preventing her legs from moving. She frowned as her eyes refused to cooperate, but continued to look up; the person wore a white tank-top and she could just about make out some crimson strands that fell alongside their face. Not needing to go any further, her eyes widened in recognition.

"Gojyo?" she asked, her tone a little incredulous, since the last time she checked the redhead seemed pretty antagonistic towards her, though not openly.

"Yeah," he replied, sighing in a somewhat relieved manner. By now her vision had focused completely, and she was now looking into the twin crimson pools that gazed back into her own.

"Do you mind getting off…if someone comes in…our position looks kind of…odd," she said, gesturing as best she could with a pinned arm. The half-breed raised an eyebrow then smiled a little eerily.

"No-one's coming in…I'm on watch," he explained, then the smile grew a little, "besides, most women never complain when I'm on top," Ena narrowed her eyes at this comment.

"Please get off, or I'll make it known that I'm wide awake," she retorted, her tone forcefully calm. Gojyo raised an eyebrow and tutted, as he shuffled away from her to sit cross-legged beside her.

"Jeez, can't you take a joke?" he muttered, watching as she pushed herself into a sitting position, "you're not even my type, so don't think too highly of yourself," Ena winced in pain as she sat up, her soft, brown hair tumbling about her shoulders. She brought a hand to her abdomen and brought it away to find that a thin layer of blood covered it, _'At least the bleedings lessening…but…how?'_ she turned to the half-breed for an answer, pausing when she caught his strange expression. She watched as an eyebrow slowly raised, then looked at herself, her eyes widening in surprise. Her upper torso was practically bare, save for the bandages that were wrapped about her wounds. Apart from that, the upper part of her robe was bunched about her waist, and her black top lay to the side.

"Pervert," she hissed, pulling up the blanket, which lay at her waist, to her chin. Gojyo blinked at the offensive statement, part of him a little disappointed that the view was gone, but scowled all the same. Ena scowled back, then remembered her wounds, "Who treated my wounds?"

"Hakkai did," he replied, then continued to elaborate, as she blinked in surprise, "he used up quite a bit of energy healing your wounds, he did as much to the point where the wounds could heal themselves,"

"Hakkai…treated me?" she repeated, slightly dazed. The redhead snorted at her seemingly dazed state of mind.

"If anyone's a pervert, it's him…he's the one that had the longest look, and who knows, maybe copped a feel while he was at it," he commented, knowing full well that his best friend would never do such a thing…but she couldn't possibly know that, so he was going to have fun heckling her.

"Hakkai's excused for peeking," she stated firmly, her brow drawn into a dark frown, "as for _'copping a feel'_ he may have had a reason for it…otherwise I doubt it's in his nature,"

"What makes you so sure?" he shot back, humour at her indignation dancing in his eyes. She seemed about to reply, but paused, catching herself and turned her face away. Gojyo frowned, turning his head to one side, as he studied her, "What's up…why the silence?"

"It's…nothing," she replied, then turned to meet his gaze, "I just know that he isn't the type of person to do those things, just like I know Goku isn't the type to betray those he cares about," The half-breed blinked at these firm and close observations, apparently taken aback, _'Guess she isn't as bad as I thought…'_ He drew in a breath and let it out, then a thought occurred to him.

"If you don't mind me asking…why were you thrashing in your sleep, and what made you cry out like that?" he asked, sure that the other three must have heard the commotion. The young woman blinked a moment, and then sighed, looking away from him once again.

"I…had a bad dream, one that I've been having for a while," she replied, then swallowed, "I guess it's why I've been pretty recluse," a sudden thought came to her, and she spoke once more, cutting off the redhead, "could you leave and join the others, please? I'll be out in a moment," She raised a hand to any protests he had, and turned to face him with a reassuring expression, "I'll be fine, I assure you, now go," Letting out a sigh, Gojyo shuffled towards the entrance of the tent and left without a backward glance.

In his absence, Ena let the blanket fall away and winced as she reached for her black top. She pulled it on gently, making sure to not disturb the bandages and shuffled outside herself. She came to her feet and pulled on the upper part of her robe in an equally gentle manner, then smoothed out the fabric before sweeping out her hair. A pang of guilt shot through her as she noted that it was evening now, meaning that she had hindered their journey. She drew in a breath and made her way towards the sounds of the popping fire, coming into the presence of the Sanzo company.

Upon sighting her, Hakkai made a move to help, but she raised a hand, knowing full well her state. She took in the countenance of each person; Sanzo was smoking a cigarette, placing her with an indifferent gaze, Goku seemed a little relieved, but worried, Gojyo had lit up a cigarette of his own and waited for whatever she had to say, Hakkai seemed fully concerned for her well-being. She smiled inwardly and then bowed deeply in greeting, causing Sanzo to raise an eyebrow, Goku to cock his head in curiosity, Gojyo to frown a little and Hakkai to make another move to help, but held himself in place. She rose, straightening her posture and smiled lightly.

"My name is Ena, and I am deeply sorry for hindering your journey, it was an error on my part and I do not deserve your aid, however it is a little late for me to make that statement, since I have already received it," she paused to look upon each of them, then continued, "I am twenty-years of age and am the daughter of a monk, who revoked his vows, and his beloved," she drew in a steadying breath, "I am the second child of three, and have been taught and raised by the teachings of my father who never forgot his monk heritage, that is why I dress as a monk," she thought a moment about what else the green-eyed man had said, "I was taught the art of battle by both my parents, hand-to-hand by my father, and with blade by my mother," she ended here, and bowed once more, signalling the end of her introduction.

Sanzo remained as he was, appraising her for a while. Her sudden self-disclosure had in fact surprised him, as he was sure had done the same to the others. He drew on his cigarette, holing the flavours within for a while, then exhaled, flicking the ash into the grass before him.

"Very well…you may remain with us for a while longer," he said, noting that she didn't rise from her bowed position, "however, if this happens again…you can be sure we will be leaving you behind," He knew his words had surprised the others, it wasn't like he was allowing her to join them permanently, but he knew their surprise was due to the fact that he had _allowed_ her to stay with them for a while longer.

"Thank you, Genjo Sanzo Houshi Sama," she said, her face evidently paler in the firelight, as she straightened her posture, "I will excuse myself…more rest is needed of me, if I am to be of use tomorrow," she left their company, making her way back to her tent. She gently lowered herself atop the soft bedding, despite the urge to simply collapse, and pulled the covers to her chest, before her world was claimed by darkness.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

**A/N**: Four months later and now I update…such a long time in my book, though not nearly as long as my other in-progress fic. Anyhow, I'm sorry for the wait, hehe, and I feel really bad for not thanking anyone up to this point…I was hoping to do that at the end of the entire story, but seeing as how I don't know how long that'll take, I'm gonna do it here, in bulk:

Thank you to the following for taking the time to review this story:

**Blaithlin-Windmistress**: Thanks for the compliment, hopefully I can carry on with the standard, hehe

**Hakuryu08**: Thanks lol, and it's not exactly a change of heart, more like a realisation, hehe…I'll edit the summary, lol, it does sound a little misleading ;;, though at the time it sounded accurate .

**Mirai Aria**: Thanks for the compliment, hope the chapters so far have narrowed down your suspicion, lol

**Rasinah**: Thank you so much, I'm glad you like this one as well hehe, and I'm happy to know that I'm not throwing the characters out of character, lol

**UltraM2000**: Thank you I know it's a little heavy on detail, but I like painting pictures as best I can with words, lol

**Shinoa Yuuki**: Thank you, I appreciate the tip but I like consistency…well as much as I can have of it at least

**Fleur-de-Lis**: Thank you very much I'm glad you feel that I have the characters well characterised hehe, as Rasinah said, I'm only armed with the info I've got from reading character bios and episode scripts…though within the last four months, I managed to watch Saiyuki Reload Fansubs lol, so hopefully my characterisations have gotten better

**Merf**: Thank you I've been planning on writing stories focusing on each individual character…but that may take a while, hehe

**SwitchVale**: Thank you I know quite a few stories do focus on a Gojyo/Hakkai pairing…but I'm not one to write yaoi, shounen-ai maybe…but mildly, lol

**RyuTsume**: Thanks, I hope this chapter managed to cover it lol

Your reviews really mean a lot to me lol, they're what keeps me thinking on how to continue the story anyways, I hope this chapter was good, and see you next update


	9. Chapter: 9

A Fools Dream

Chapter: 9

The town was bustling with people, making it barely possible for the two friends to walk more than a few feet before bumping into someone. According to the innkeeper, it was just their luck to arrive during the preparations of a festival, dedicated to the town's founder.

The group had arrived at the town shortly after midday. Not wanting to waste any time, Hakkai had managed to cajole Gojyo into accompanying him to purchase supplies for their continuing journey. Both men were ladled with bags and added to their burden, they had to carefully manoeuvre between children running this way and that, and the residents of this town. All about them, the shops and market stalls were doing good business; vendors calling to customers, women chattering excitedly about the coming event, children laughing as they played, men accompanying their wives, friends and loved ones, doing what they did best in these situations. More than once Gojyo had been close to snapping at the little ones that ran into him, while Hakkai watched on in amusement, chuckling lightly.

"You know, instead of getting a kick out of these kids running into me, why don't you do something useful, like checking what's next on the list," Gojyo growled, casting a dissatisfied look towards his friend. Hakkai's smile widened, as he complied with the redhead's wishes and dug out the list from his pocket. As he looked over it, the half-breed dug out his pack of cigarettes, pushed one out and trapped it between his lips.

"You know…" Hakkai said idly, "it's been about two or so weeks since Ena joined…"

"…So?" the other asked, his tone marking his disinterest as he looked for the vital component for his craving – the lighter.

"Nothing really…" he paused a moment, casting his eyes towards his friend as he attempted to light the cigarette, "just that she seems to be a little more relaxed since she opened up a little…"

"Again…so?" he prompted with the same disinterest, though a slight tone of annoyance could be heard. He cursed when his lighter failed on him again and promptly threw it into a nearby bin, proceeding to dig out one of the many spares he always kept.

"I still don't really trust her…" Hakkai said, his tone expressing the guilt he felt. He couldn't understand why he felt guilty, he rarely trusted very many people as it was. Maybe it was because she had travelled with them, ate with them, fought by their sides; all of her actions indicated her alliance, but still the trust was not there.

"None of us do," Gojyo said around the cigarette that he had successfully lit, removing it as he exhaled, "she hasn't really done anything to earn it…well anything that we could acknowledge anyway,"

"I know…but I'm curious to know what she's hiding…" the other mused, "she isn't malicious in any way, I can sense that…her reason for joining us could be legitimate, but I just feel that there's more to this whole thing…more to what her…Gojyo?" he came to a stop upon realising the absence of his friend, and turned about to locate him. Sure enough, a little ways away, there he was chatting to a somewhat alluring woman, _'Correction…_apologising _to a somewhat alluring woman,'_ the green-eyed man thought as he took in the scene, noting her bow in an apologetic manner. As he watched the two for a while, he also came to realise that he had seen the woman somewhere before…and he'd also seen that look in Gojyos _eye_ before too, _'Looks like I'm going to be continuing on my own…'_ he sighed, _'why didn't I bring Goku instead…'_ with this final thought, he made his way towards his lecherous friend and the poor woman he had ensnared.

-o-

"You don't have to apologise, it was my fault," Gojyo said, smiling kindly at the young woman who wouldn't stop apologising, "I should have been watching where I was going,"

"Oh, but it _is_ my fault," the woman insisted, her big eyes shining with her worry and shame, "I'm so clumsy, I should have been focusing on where I was going instead of having my head in the clouds," the redhead smiled and noted how cute she looked, maybe she'd be up for a little fun later, "Is there anything I can do to apologise?"

"Well…"

"Gojyo!" he looked up at the sound of his name and saw Hakkai coming towards them. The green-eyed man made his way through the crowd, apologising when bumping into someone, until he reached his friend.

"Uh, Hakkai," he said, smiling in an apologetic manner, "look…I'm really sorry, but do you think you can continue on your own…I kinda…" he trailed off, cocking his head towards the woman. Hakkai sighed and nodded, smiling as he did so…he had, after all, known this was coming.

"Okay," he agreed, hoisting his bags a bit for a better grip, "I'll see you back at the inn," Gojyo looked at his friend, noting his tone and shifted the bags he was holding, so as to reach out a hand.

"How about handing me another bag," he said, to which his friend blinked in slight surprise, "least I can do is take some of the stuff back since I'm heading there anyway,"

"If you insist," the brown-haired man smiled gratefully, handing another bag to his friend, "leave them in Sanzo's room, they should be safer there…I hope," the half-breed smiled and turned back, beckoning for the woman to come with, to which she complied. Hakkai stood where he was, watching the two walking away, a strange feeling welling within as he sensed something strange about his friend's female companion.

-o-

Sanzo lay on his bed, facing the wall as he attempted to block out the sound of the monkey playing with the dragon. It had been a long ride and all he wanted was to sleep, until Hakkai and the cockroach came back then they could order food. He couldn't understand it, even after all this time, how could Goku be so annoyingly full of energy…even a normal youkai would be tired after their journey. On another note, just why was the energetic boy in his room anyway, he had his own room to play in, they all did.

"Sanzo," Goku called, the cheerful tone making the blond monk twitch in annoyance as he grunted in reply, "Hakuryuu and I are gonna go to Ena's room, 'kay?" Sanzo grunted in response again, looking forward to the quiet, _'Maybe then I could get some sleep,'_ The young man stayed where he was a moment, looking at his master and dearest friend's back, before letting out a sigh and coming to his feet, "Come on Hakuryuu, let's go see how she's doing," as he reached the door, it opened and he collided with whoever had opened it.

"Shit! Watch where you're going, you clumsy ape!" the brown-haired teen looked up at the remark and his eyes narrowed. Just what was _he_ doing here so soon, and what right had he to yell at him.

"You should have knocked, bastard kappa!" he shot back, letting out a yelp as a pillow hit him in the back of his head, "Ow! Sanzo, Gojyo started it!" he exclaimed, rubbing his head and pointing to the real one at fault.

"I don't care! I've been trying to sleep and all I hear is your annoying voice!" the monk snarled, sitting up and bearing a dangerous look in his eyes, "Get out already," Goku scowled at the man he held so dear and exited the room, muttering under his breath as he cradled the little dragon. The redhead watched after him, then turned back to the ill-mannered monk.

"Yo, I've brought back some supplies, just thought I'd leave'em here," he said, stepping in and placing them in the corner as the blond man made a disinterested sound. Once he was done, he turned back to their leader, who had gotten up to pick up his pillow, "Hakkai'll be back soon, I'm off for some TLC,"

"Hmph, whatever," he grunted, throwing the pillow atop his bed and lying back down upon it. Gojyo smirked, expecting nothing less, and exited the room. He looked down both ways and saw Goku outside a room some doors down the left side. He frowned when Ena answered it, not really surprised as to where Goku had gone. He watched the youth enter, and froze when his gaze met hers for a fleeting moment before she disappeared into her room, _'Che…typical…'_ He turned down the hall to his right and made his way through the inn to the bar, where he stopped at the doorway and looked for the woman he had brought. His eyes narrowed as he found her, surrounded by four men who had no business being near her. He started to move towards her, spurred by the split-second glance she had given him; she was asking for his help.

"Yo boys," he jeered, coming to a stop just before them, "I believe the lady's with me," the four men turned to him, each one seeming to be of decent build and would have posed a threat to any normal person. Then again, Gojyo wasn't normal.

"Oh yeah, what makes you think she hasn't changed her mind?" one of them asked; a definite challenge designed to intimidate.

"Yeah, why'd she want you when she's got us four?" another piped up, casting a lewd look towards the young woman. The half-breed raised an eyebrow, he really had to give these guys points for their guts, oh and the other two too, since they started moving in on him. He decided to humour them a little and stepped back, raising his hands in a submissive manner.

"Ah well…I guess you're right," he said, catching the satisfied looks on their faces, "do we still need to fight, 'cause I bruise easily, and yeah…women don't really go for the punch-bag," the four men had moved in, tightening the circle about him.

"Well, you upset us and ruined our mood, so we're gonna have to teach you a lesson," the first man spoke again, his grin widening as the redhead gulped.

-o-

"Dammit, you asshole!" the man cried, cradling his broken arm as he knelt among his fallen comrades. A fight had broken out and all four of them had been severely punished; now the supposed leader was alone, the other three lying unconscious on the ground outside the inn.

"Who's an asshole?" Gojyo asked, stepping out of the inn and grabbing a fistful of the man's hair. He yanked the fool up to eye-level, his gaze burning into the other's now fearful eyes, "Listen, I just beat your asses…you sure you're not a glutton for punishment?" The man looked back at him, his eyes wide upon his bruised and bleeding face. All four of them were in bad shape; he couldn't risk taking more damage from this man…no monster. The redhead let go of the man, and looked down upon him, "Good, now bugger off before I lose it," Not wanting to spend another moment in the same space, the wounded man set about to waking his friends before making a run for it.

"My hero," came the soft, grateful words as the woman came up and slipped an arm through his, "that's three times you've saved my life, I am in your debt…"

"Gojyo," he turned to look at the woman, who smiled warmly up at him.

"Yuri," she replied, then tip-toed up to whisper in his ear, "please, allow me to reward you," he gazed into her eyes and caught her meaning, _'It's been a while,'_ He smiled and took her hand, leading her to his room. Upon reaching the door, he allowed her to enter first, but stopped when his name was called.

"I'll be there in a bit okay, make yourself comfortable," Yuri smiled and nodded as he closed the door. Gojyo turned about, sighing in annoyance, meeting the disapproving look of Ena, "Oh, it's you…where's Goku and what do you want?"

"Goku's with Hakuryuu, in my room," she replied, placing a hand on her hip as he folded his arms, "is it wise to spend the night with a woman you just met?" A displeased eyebrow rose up and he leaned towards her.

"It's none of your business," he sneered, then he smiled as his eyes twinkled with dark humour, "Why do you care? Are you jealous?"

"No way in hell," she hissed, scowling at his accusation. Her gaze flits to his door then back at him, "All the same, you should be careful…Y-there's something strange about that woman," The half-breed smirked, was she actually worried about him?

"Don't worry," he assured, unfolding his arms and cupping her chin with one hand, "I'll make sure that there'll be plenty left for you," He winked, smirking as she shot him a dirty look before pulling away and storming off to her room. He watched her go, unfazed by the resounding slam of her door, and chuckled as he returned to his own – he had a guest to entertain.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

**A/N**: I'm sorry for the lateness, but writer's block is a horrible thing, plus I had to rediscover the direction I wanted this to go in.

**SwitchVale**: Thanks for sticking with the story this far, I really appreciate it (smile) I know it's been 5 months since the last update, but I hope to finish this story quick, but with no lack of quality so it won't look like a rush-job…heck I'm not rushing anyway, but please stick with me on this…I just hope the ending won't be a disappointment, hehe


End file.
